Golf Course Water Usage

Comparing Golf Course Water Usage to a Seasonal Baseline Estimate

The golf industry utilizes water to provide turf conditions for the golfer. Frequently the amount of water used to provide these conditions has been scrutinized. These templates provide can provide a quick snapshot in time as to how well the golf course is utilizing their water resources.

During the season, measurements of Evapotranspiration (ET) can be found from a variety of sources. Many golf courses have their own weather stations which can produce this type of information. Other websites, such as CIMIS, can provide historical ET data for most geographic regions in the state. A generalized crop coefficient for cool and warm season turf has been developed, 80% and 60% of ET respectively.

Golf courses can now compare how efficiently they are irrigating by comparing their water use to a seasonal baseline estimate from these turf crop coefficients.

If the golf course is over the seasonal baseline estimate, can the superintendent provide a number of potential factors that are reasonably attributable to the increased water use? For example: antiquated irrigation system, poor sprinkler spacing, prolonged stretch of hot weather, leaky ponds, etc.

If the golf course is under the seasonal baseline estimate, can the superintendent provide rationale to explain the decrease in water use? For example: mild summer weather, significant coastal influence, utilized hand watering for select areas, eliminated irrigation to out of play regions, planted drought tolerant landscape plants in common areas, etc.